It is generally acknowledged that one of the more difficult early learning tasks is that of learning the English alphabet. At approximately the same time, children are expected to learn the basic Arabic numerals from one to ten and to begin to understand basic arithmetric. The traditional methods of teaching these skills have been shown to be tedious at best, and often lead to a dislike of learning activities by children.
One solution to the above problem is to incorporate the above learning tasks into a game, thus providing the instruction necessary and at the same time creating a competitive and enjoyable environment for the students. However, few games have been developed which teach such basic skills. Rather, most games which involve the use of the alphabet or numbers require at least a basic knowledge of those characters before the game can be played. In addition, those games that are known to the applicant which are capable of teaching basic alphanumeric skills require the player to have already developed some skill in the tasks involved in the play of the game in order to be successful. This can be discouraging to a less skillful or less knowledgeable player, thus often leading to other learning problems.
The need arises for a game which may be easily played by children who have not yet developed sophisticated alphanumeric skills, and yet in some variations is sufficiently advanced to hold the attention of older persons or adults. The game should test and enforce the learning of the alphanumeric system, as well as color variations. Moreover, it is desirable that the game also involve some use of motor skills for the players.